We're just cruising, and I've got one arm hanging outside the passenger side of the new Jaguar F-Type SVR. The driver, a colleague from Car and Driver, decides that he simply must pass a long line of some dozen cars on a straightaway. He plunges the accelerator to the floor, and I suddenly feel like my arm is going to rip off. Skin prickles painfully, and I snap the appendage back in.

He grins over at me as we sweep past them all.

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And up until now, the 550-horsepower R has been the alpha F-Type. Jaguar announced the SVR, the first Jaguar from the newly coined Special Vehicle Operations unit, just before this year's Geneva auto show. I traveled to Catalonia, Spain, to test drive it.

The SVR's coupe pricing begins at $125,950; the convertible at $128,800. The base model F-Type, a manual coupe, costs $61,400. That's a hell of a gap, but it's because Jag's only true sports car needs to be many things to many people. This one ostensibly appeals to someone who would like to go 200 miles per hour, the top claimed speed in any production Jag. The SVR has increased power (575 hp/516 lb-ft of torque) and aerodynamic improvements such as a flat underbody, new bumpers, and a very handsome active rear wing that deploys at 70 mph or in dynamic mode.

Still, after driving it on both track and road, the potential top speed seems rather like the least interesting element. The R is only sold in the U.S. with AWD, and it already excelled at straight-line hurdles. One doubts any customer will attempt the full Monty. The extra aero bits do make the car look better than ever, pushing it further into the territory of a muscle-bound exotic.

The SVR is a chance for Jag engineers to rectify issues with the F-Type R.

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It is a lessons-learned car. The SVR is a chance for Jag engineers to rectify issues with the F-Type R, namely its punitively harsh ride and maddening understeer. The R is a binary car: Feel free to brake, turn, or accelerate, but don't try to blend any of those operations. Any flicker of right-footed impatience translates into a sure push. Nobody would accuse the R of being a momentum car.

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"The target was to improve turn-in performance and take out understeer, allowing you to manipulate the car with the throttle, rather than just staying away from it," says SVO's vehicle dynamics specialist, David Pook. He says the front anti-roll bar was softened and the rear stiffened. "We've moved the balance rearward, making the rear tires work harder. And the car inherently has more traction because of 305 11J rear wheel."

Between the chassis tweaks and new rubber, the team also coaxed out extra comfort. The ride is noticeably smoother. "You need to be able to access the huge performance," Pook says. "But it also needs to be safe and confident, and you should be able to drive it to the shops."

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The proof of those changes are found on the Spanish back roads. I've driven the R on the same stretches and was jarred senseless as a passenger. The SVR is gentler, but not gentle, and the span of its abilities are clearly wider.

And then there's the sound.

I've heard race cars with straight pipes that are less intrusive.

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It is even louder, brasher, crazier—a true feat considering the R's psychedelic howl. The SVR surfs along a wave of omnipresent sound, the result of a new, lightweight, four-pipe exhaust constructed of titanium and an alloy called inconel. (Sounds made up, I know, but apparently the new kit also saves 35 pounds.) I've heard race cars with straight pipes that are less intrusive. You couldn't get it within five miles of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and its draconian noise restrictions.

But still, I wanted it to be more fun. The R struck me as almost being too studious. The mandate that a sports car should be extremely stiff and powerful doesn't always make for a fun sports car. Something that Pook, the chassis guy, obliquely acknowledges. "You can jump in a 575 horsepower car and start to explore its limits fairly quickly. It'll look after you. But the last trick is to be a little bit playful. It should respond to what you want to do, rather than being sterile."

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The proof of those changes are largely evident on the Spanish back roads. I shove aside my colleague, drop into the driver's seat, and pummel down the narrow, jagged lanes best suited to a Porsche Cayman. The front of the car no longer feels like its taken a hit of Novocain, the Pirelli P Zeros tucking into corners far more willingly than the R. You can balance the car with the throttle and accelerate out of corners earlier. Still, given its curb weight (3759 lbs) and love of straight-line speeds, the SVR is just this side of a muscle car.

In the end, the new balance and suspension adjustments are the most welcome changes. The extra sound never hurts, either.

Jason Harper, a contributing editor to Road & Track, has tested and written on cars for two decades. His scariest drive was a rally race in an original Lancia 037, his first drive of a supercar was the Porsche Carrera GT, and the only time he's gotten a speeding ticket was in a base Mini Cooper. His column, Harper's Bizarre, runs every Wednesday.